Avalanche, GAME DAY and Winnipeg
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Connor Hellebuyck is the best goaltender in the world. Our expert NHL predictions expect the star goaltender to keep the Canucks in check tonight.
The top three teams in the NHL reside in the Central Division, and two of them face off Sunday when the Minnesota Wild host the Colorado Avalanche in Saint Paul, Minn.
The stakes are high as the Avalanche and Wild meet for the second time this season. The Avs currently hold an eight-point advantage over the Wild and a four-point lead over the Dallas Stars, with two games in hand on both teams.
Before the great Cale Makar wore No. 8, there was another No. 8 who was pretty great. Ahead of the 1996 Stanley Cup-winning Avalanche team being honored Dec. 11, the current No. 8 showed some respect to the man who came before him.
Whenever there is an opportunity to engage Colorado Avalanche fans beyond the confines of the arena, the conversation tends to orbit a familiar set of themes: admiration for the team’s dominance, confidence born of consistent winning, and—almost inevitably—a lingering concern about the power play.
Nelson scored a power-play goal on seven shots in Tuesday's 5-3 win over the Kraken.
The Nashville Predators lost 4-2 to the Colorado Avalanche at Ball Arena on Dec. 13, ending a two-game winning streak. Nathan MacKinnon led all skaters with a goal and an assist. He now leads the NHL with 55 points.